Chapter 15 Transitioning to Adulthood

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Chapter 15Transitioning to Adulthood
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How Do Former Special Education Students Fare as
Adults?

• Completing high school
• Only 25 of the students with disabilities exited
  high school with a diploma in the 1999-2000
  school year
• Employment status
• The unemployment rate for young adults with
  disabilities is 36.5 when they have been out of
  school for 3-5 years. Worst for students with
  sensory disabilities.
• Postsecondary education
• 27 of young adults with disabilities enrolled in
  postsecondary education compared with 68 of the
  general population
• Overall adjustment and success
• 37 live independently compared to 60 of the
  general population
• 4 out of 5 former special education students had
  still not achieved the status of independent
  adulthood after being out of high school for up
  to 5 years

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What does it mean to be adjusted?

• Independent functioning in three domains
• Employment
• full time job, or job training
• Residential arrangement
• living alone, with spouse or roommate
• Social activities
• having friends, belonging to social groups

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Transition Services

• Transition is a process involving the
  coordination, delivery, and transfer of services
  from school to post-school agencies
• Definition of Transition Services in IDEA
• Outcome-oriented process based upon the students
  individual needs and preferences
• Includes
• Instruction
• Related services
• Community experiences
• Employment
• Daily living opportunities
• Functional vocational evaluation

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Transition Services Models

• Funding authorized for secondary education and
  transitional services
• Wills bridges model of school-to-work transition
  (secondary ed to work)
• Three levels of service
• No transition services
• Time-limited transition services
• Ongoing employment services
• Halperns three-dimensional model (not only
  working is important !)
• Three domains
• Quality of residential environment
• Adequacy of social/interpersonal network
• Meaningful employment

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Individualized Transition Plan

• When a student reaches age 14, IDEA requires the
  IEP team to consider post-school goals
• When a student reaches age 16, an individualized
  transition plan must be developed
• Appropriate transition-related objectives should
  be selected at each age/grade level, beginning in
  elementary school

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Employment

• Preparing students for life after school
• Three characteristics to good secondary programs
• Functional (vocational) skills curriculum
• Integrated settings
• Community-based instruction
• Competitive employment
• Performs work valued by an employer
• Functions in an integrated setting with
  non-disabled coworkers
• Earns at or above the minimum wage

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Employment (cont.)

• Supported employment for adults with moderate and
  severe MR
• Small business enterprise
• New business use individuals with disabilities as
  part of their workforce
• Mobile work crew
• E.g., construction, maintenance
• Workstation
• Specific projects performed by a group of workers
  (e.g., paper shredding)
• Individual placement
• E.g., jobs at large organizations such as
  Starbucks, Target, etc.

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Employment (cont.)

• Natural supports?
• Co-workers?
• Natural and contrived cues?

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Employment (cont.)

• Sheltered employment
• Vocational setting for adults with disabilities,
  offer transitional and extended employment
• Similar to a small business enterprise providing
  rehab, training, and employment
• Business partnerships enable people with
  disabilities to contribute to society through
  meaningful employment and increased independence,
  self-confidence, and dignity.
• The problems with sheltered employment include
  limited opportunities for job placement and low
  pay
• Not staffed or equipped for sophisticated work

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Employment (cont.)

• Work Activity Program (WAP) services through the
  Department of DDS include paid work, work
  adjustment and supportive habilitation services
  in a sheltered work shop setting.
• WAPs provide paid work in accordance with Federal
  and State Fair Labor Standards. They are required
  to provide work at least 50 of the time.
• Work adjustment services may include developing
  good work safety practices, money management
  skills, and appropriate work habits.
• Supportive habilitation services may include
  social skill and community resource training as
  long as the services are necessary to achieve
  vocational objectives.

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Residential Alternatives

• Group homes
• Provide family style living for a small group of
  individuals
• Foster homes
• As part of a family unit, the adult with
  disabilities also has more opportunities to
  interact with and be accepted by the community at
  large
• Apartment living
• Three types of apartment living arrangements
• Apartment cluster
• Coresidence apartment
• Maximum-independence apartment

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Residential Alternatives (cont.)

• Supported living
• Helping people with disabilities live in the
  community as independently and normally as they
  possibly can
• Institutions
• Deinstitutionalization - the movement of people
  with MR out of large institutions and into small,
  community-based living environments - has been an
  active reality for the past 35 years

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Recreation and Leisure

• Recreation and leisure activities do not come
  easily for many adults with disabilities
• Special educators must realize the importance of
  including training for recreation and leisure in
  curricula for school- age children with
  disabilities